J-35 tone bars

[littlejohnny]

Hi

 

watched this today

 

the guy explains the sunburst one is a '36 reissue and has 3 tone bars, the natural one is a '39 reissue with 2 tone bars.

 

I think the difference in tone is quit obvious.

 

Makes me wonder wheather the regular production model j-35 have 3 or 2 tone bars.

[Jalex]

Yes there was quite a difference. However I think he should have kept both guitars in the same tuning the sunburst model was in standard and natural is some kind of open tuning so not really a fair comparison.

[tpbiii]

Historically, the early J-35 (Trojans) were very different from later models. The earlier ones had larger less tapered bodies, a french heal, no back binding, and three unscalloped tone bars -- basically a Jumbo with less binding. The later one varied in their tone bar layout, but two scalloped tone bars was fairly common late -- the body was the same as the AJ and the later J-45 and SJ.

 

The earlier ones are big, raw, and in your face -- the later ones are more civilized, a bit like a sparser sounding D-18 from the period. Really totally different guitars.

 

Best,

 

-Tom

[bob von d'lucci]

I have a Fullers 39 J35 reissue. How many tone bars

In this one? How can I tell ?

Thanks

Geoff

[Motherofpearl]

Fullers has 2 if I'm not mistaken. Tom didn't the earlier models have the 3 tone bars and they switched to 2 in 1939?

[tpbiii]

Tom didn't the earlier models have the 3 tone bars and they switched to 2 in 1939?

 

I don't think it was a clean cutoff. Certainly the later ones (after c 1939) tended to be two tone bar (both scalloped and unscalloped) but three tone bars showed up occasionally in that period too. What I do know is about the early ones (started in fall 1936) where the body shape evolution happened in mid 1937 and a few two unscalloped tone bar versions showed up in that period too.

 

It is perfectly normal for Gibson to be consistently inconsistent during this period, but all I have is anecdotal information.

 

Their early J models have both two and three tone bars,

 

In the pictures below, the top row ('36 J-35, '36 AJ, and '35 Jumbo) all have three tone bars. Most of the AJs right from the first were two tone bars, but here is proof at least one 3 tone bar version exists -- it is incredibly rare.

 

The front row ('35 RSRG and '36 RSSD) are both two tone bar. So they were doing both all along.

 

Please note I am not answering your question -- rather I am just telling what I know.

 

 

Here is the J-35 bracing -- three tapered tone bars but very light!

 

 

All the best,

 

-Tom

[littlejohnny]

Yes there was quite a difference. However I think he should have kept both guitars in the same tuning the sunburst model was in standard and natural is some kind of open tuning so not really a fair comparison.

 

 

You are right! I really did not want to say anything about the quality of the video. If you don't have to say anything nice, don't say anything. Uh, I wished I'd obey to this principle more often.

 

 

 

I don't think it was a clean cutoff. Certainly the later ones (after c 1939) tended to be two tone bar (both scalloped and unscalloped) but three tone bars showed up occasionally in that period too. What I do know is about the early ones (started in fall 1936) where the body shape evolution happened in mid 1937 and a few two unscalloped tone bar versions showed up in that period too.

 

It is perfectly normal for Gibson to be consistently inconsistent during this period, but all I have is anecdotal information.

 

Their early J models have both two and three tone bars,

 

In the pictures below, the top row ('36 J-35, '36 AJ, and '35 Jumbo) all have three tone bars. Most of the AJs right from the first were two tone bars, but here is proof at least one 3 tone bar version exists -- it is incredibly rare.

 

The front row ('35 RSRG and '36 RSSD) are both two tone bar. So they were doing both all along.

 

Please note I am not answering your question -- rather I am just telling what I know.

 

 

Here is the J-35 bracing -- three tapered tone bars but very light!

 

 

All the best,

 

-Tom

 

 

I hoped for some owners of the regular production model to take out their mirrors and cameras.

But your knowledge passed down on this forum is pretty much appreciated here, to say the least.

[Bigg T]

I don't think it was a clean cutoff. Certainly the later ones (after c 1939) tended to be two tone bar (both scalloped and unscalloped) but three tone bars showed up occasionally in that period too. What I do know is about the early ones (started in fall 1936) where the body shape evolution happened in mid 1937 and a few two unscalloped tone bar versions showed up in that period too.

 

It is perfectly normal for Gibson to be consistently inconsistent during this period, but all I have is anecdotal information.

 

Their early J models have both two and three tone bars,

 

In the pictures below, the top row ('36 J-35, '36 AJ, and '35 Jumbo) all have three tone bars. Most of the AJs right from the first were two tone bars, but here is proof at least one 3 tone bar version exists -- it is incredibly rare.

 

The front row ('35 RSRG and '36 RSSD) are both two tone bar. So they were doing both all along.

 

Please note I am not answering your question -- rather I am just telling what I know.

 

 

Here is the J-35 bracing -- three tapered tone bars but very light!

 

 

All the best,

 

-Tom

 

WOW!!! Thanks for the input. So how many tone bars in the new production J 35's?

 

I have to know, which one do you enjoy playing the most?

[bob von d'lucci]

I can say that my Fuller's 39 reissue sounds much more like the natural.

Geoff

[JuanCarlosVejar]

wow thanks ! beautiful sounding guitars .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JC

[tpbiii]

I have to know, which one do you enjoy playing the most?

 

Being a guitar geek, I live for questions like that[biggrin].

 

My wife and I play several different kinds of music, but the difficult one we aspire to most is traditional bluegrass. Thus I judge "best" from that particular narrow perspective.

 

Our interest in mid 30s Gibson has developed over the past decade or so. We have some fine Martins, but I was fascinated by the rarer mid-30s Js that some said were their equal or better than the legendary Martins.

 

Three of the guitars in the picture came to us by chance -- that was how we operated in general. We sort of had a "very desired" list, which we did not expect to buy but were ready to buy if the right opportunity occurred. That's how we found the '36 J-35, '36 RSSD, and the '35 Jumbo. The other two -- the '36 AJ and '35 RSRG we bought from Gruhn because AJs were renowned to be the equal of old herringbones and the RSRG because I had played a converted one that was beyond great (as a bluegrass guitar).

 

So here we go. Both the RSSD and the J-35 are incredibly powerful guitars, but their tone to my ear is a bit to raw for bluegrass. My overall favorites in order are the AJ (really the equal of the old bones), the '35 Jumbo, and the RSRG -- all I believe among the best BG guitars ever built. The Jumbo should sound just like the J-35 -- they are basically the same guitar -- but the J-35 is all original whereas the Jumbo has a lot of repairs. I think that those repairs took just enough of the edge off so instead of raw, it comes across as powerful.

 

We no longer have any guitars on our list -- we are done. We recently acquired one other Gibson that we include in this top group for bluegrass. It is a 1942 RW Southern Jumbo -- very rare (maybe 50 built) and the only banner I have had or played that can stand in with old bones and the other three Gibsons.

 

Remember, these are personal evaluations that are highly colored by how we use these guitars -- you might react very differently.

 

All the best.

 

-Tom